I sadly neglected my PS3 copy of the game and it only ever saw the inside of the aging system on one brief occasion many years ago. I enjoyed my fleeting time with the game and found the twisted humor to be right up my street.

Gameplay:
I’m not quite sure why I never gave Bayonetta a proper chance back then, so put my name forward for the review. The controls and combat are still great, but now the loading screen where I could practice my moves goes by so quickly I cannot even perform a jump. This isn’t really a bad thing for people familiar with the game, but I felt at a little disadvantage.

The game expertly weaves you through the myriad of combat moves and defensive actions as the crazy story progresses. I felt like I was still learning deep into the game. There is plenty to unlock in the shop/bar/hell, or whatever it’s supposed to be. Plus, I can unlock some bonuses in the end-of-level shooting game, not that I ever do well enough to get anything worth my time.

Is the action and style of this game over-the-top? Without a doubt, yes. I can change the difficulty but seem to be scraping by on normal. I am tempted to play through the game again and try to get better scores for each section.

If an attack is dodged at the last possible second, the time briefly slows, allowing for the nimble witch to inflict a ton of damage on the hapless celestial foes. The effect looks great and it never gets old.

As per usual I refrain from delving into the story, even if this one did originally release ten years ago. Suffice to say this one is intriguing. I hope to finish it very soon but fear I will never manage to get the Platinum Trophy, as this one is tough.

Visuals:Bayonetta is a good looking game, but there is no doubt as to its age when witnessing the graphics. It might run in 4K at a silky-smooth 60 frames per second, but there is no denying this game is old. The characters, especially the star of the game, look great and I can easily say that they never looked better. The details that the old PS3 muddied and blurred are crisp and clean now.

Some areas look fantastic now and the effects that made the PS3 struggle are effortlessly delivered on-screen. One such challenge area springs to mind, accessible via a small body of water (which looks great by the way), I was almost fooled into thinking I was playing a more recent game.

The big deal with Bayonetta back when the game first appeared was her hair. Now this isn’t any ordinary bunch of protein filament, as this witch can form weapons and even huge beasts to attack her opponents. Now, seeing as her skin-tight clothing seems to be made out of the same stuff, it disappears when it’s needed to form large creatures. You never get to see any proper nudity, but it’s very suggestive and a little bit kinky.

Audio:
Nothing has changed in this department as far as I’m aware. All of the cheesy jokes and one-liners are present and correct in this latest version.

Online/Multiplayer:
This game is one player only and features no online component. Although, there are leaderboards for Time and Combo stats. Sadly, at the time of writing there was no data available on any board.

Conclusion:Bayonetta was and still is a fantastic game. It might look dated but still plays exceptionally well. I desperately want to finish this one and then play Vanquish, the other game in this excellent Anniversary Collection.

This is a perfect time to grab this solid title if you are a newcomer to the Platinum Games lineup or just can’t get enough of this strong female character and want to see her kick some butt in glorious 4K.

I would have liked to see more content in this edition, anything from interviews to artwork. I also firmly believe fans would do anything for a complete remake with today’s technology. We can but dream.

Score:

* All screenshots used in this review were taken directly from the game using the Share functionality on the PlayStation 4.